In our almost 40 years of gardening here at JLBG, I have yet to find any other vine that’s better to cover a fence than our native (West Virginia south to Florida and west to Texas) Bignonia capreolata. In full flower now, this amazing evergreen vine covers a fence quickly, but without trying to take
The amazing witch hazel, Hamamaelis x intermedia ‘Orange Peel’ is in full flower at JLBG today, perfuming the cool air. The plant below is 8 years old, and should mature at only 8′ tall.
This past weekend, I noticed an unexpected fragrance from the mixed border that surrounds our home. It didn’t take long to realize that it was time for the amazing Autumn tea olives, Osmanthus fragrans to begin their perfumed floral show. The first to open for us this year is the amazing Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus
The procession of Lycoris (Surprise lilies) continues as we pass mid-August. Here are some recent images. So far, this year, we have flowered over 300 different taxa. Below is Lycoris aurea, which has the widest natural range of any lycoris, from India to Africa, south to Indonesia. Winter hardiness of this fall-leaf species is dependent
A Summer of Surprises Read More »
Flowering now in the garden is the North American native, Echeveria runyonii, a Northern Mexico succulent native to rocky cliffs in the state of Tamaulipas. This gem was discovered in the wild by our friends at Yucca Do Nursery in 1990 and the species was later named in honor of botanist, Robert Runyon. This delightful
Flowering now in the garden is the lovely, variegated-leaf tiger lily, Lilium lancifolium ‘Fukurin Fu’.
Variegated Tigers Read More »
We truly love the dwarf ginger lily, Hedychium ‘Slim’s Orange’. Not only is it the earliest ginger lily to flower, but it’s also one of the smallest and most floriferous. The photo below was taken a few weeks ago in mid-June. I can’t imagine gardening without this amazing selection, first shared with us by Raleigh
Ever since I was a kid, I was fascinated by the native orange-flowering (NY south to Mississippi) annual bog plant, Polygala lutea. The brilliance of the orange color nearly glows in the garden, but how in the world did the folks who named it, come up with the idea to use the specific epithet “lutea”,
Color-blind botanists Read More »
One of our long-time favorite summer perennials is the amazing Lychnis ‘Orange Sherbet’. This gem first came into our life when I traveled for a Midwest talk in 2004, where one of the hosts asked if I’d like a plant of her Lychnis coronata. I assumed she was talking about either the common, short-lived Lychnis
Orange Sherbet is Simply Delicious Read More »
The advancements plant-breeders have made in developing garden-worthy Alstroemeria (princess lily or Peruvian lily) is truly amazing. Modern introductions such as ‘Indian Summer’ bloom from mid-spring through fall, perhaps slowing down a bit if summer is exceptionally hot and dry. The planting of ‘Indian Summer’ in the photograph is in a small island bed (the
Indian Summer in Spring, Summer and Fall Read More »
